Brown ancient ant

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Brown ancient ant
Systematics
Class : Insects (Insecta)
Order : Hymenoptera (Hymenoptera)
Family : Ants (Formicidae)
Subfamily : Great Ants (Ponerinae)
Genre : Ponera
Type : Brown ancient ant
Scientific name
Ponera testacea
Emery , 1895

The brown great ant ( Ponera testacea ) is an ant from the subfamily of the great ants (Ponerinae).

features

This ant is often confused with a very similar species, the narrow ancient ant ( Ponera coarctata ), to which it is closely related. The brown prehistoric ant is colored ocher-yellow to yellow-brown and is somewhat smaller and more filigree than its sister species . The workers are 2.5 to 3 millimeters long, the queen is three millimeters long on average, the males a little less.

distribution

The brown primal ant uses warm places with little vegetation and avoids shady places. It is widespread throughout Central Europe , but more southerly than P. coarctata and rarer than this. In general, it is a little more warmth-loving than its sister species.

Way of life

In terms of behavior, it is indistinguishable from its sister species. The nests are created underground. Occasionally, prepared cavities are used, such as tunnels of earthworms or other animals. Like most ancient ants, the brown prehistoric ant feeds exclusively on zoophagus . All kinds of arthropods living under the earth's surface and their stages of development serve as prey. The workers mostly hunt underground or in the litter layer.

Systematics

Although the brown prehistoric ant was first described in 1895, for a century it was only considered a variation of Ponera coarctata . It has only had species status since it was re-described by Seifert and Csõsz in 2003.

Synonyms

The following synonyms for Ponera testacea are known:

  • Ponera coarctata var. Testacea Emery

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Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b CSŐSZ, S. and SEIFERT, B .: PONERA TESTACEA EMERY, 1895 STAT. N. - A SISTER SPECIES OF P. COARCTATA (LATREILLE, 1802). (PDF; 193 kB) Retrieved June 5, 2008 .
  2. ↑ a b Bernhard Seifert : The ants of Central and Northern Europe . lutra Verlags- und Vertriebsgesellschaft, Görlitz / Tauer 2007, ISBN 978-3-936412-03-1
  3. ↑ Ponera testacea Emery, 1895. www.formicidae.be, accessed July 6, 2008 .

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